Similar Differences
by Amarin Rose
Summary: Pairing: Malik-Seto Summary: Who would have thought that Malik Ishtar and Seto Kaiba had anything in common? Certainly not them. But it is amazing how similar they are... (COMPLETE)
1. School Is Hell

**If This Is Monday, Then I Must Be In School – Or Hell**

* * *

School sucked.

Or at least that was the conclusion Malik Ishtar had come to by the time the bell rang for lunch. The only people he knew at this school fell into one of five camps: A) they were scared of him, B) they hated him, C) they thought he was insane, D) any two of the above, or E) **all** of the above.

Actually, he was pretty sure Yugi Moto and his friends all fell into the 'E' category. Yami wasn't scared of him, since he and Yugi **knew** he wasn't insane anymore – but for all intents and purposes, he wasn't going to be making friends with them any time soon.

Forget about making friends; he just hoped he could make it through the rest of the day without getting sent to the Shadow Realm – again – getting Mind-Crushed – again – or both.

Again.

Sighing and grabbing his books, Malik slipped out of the classroom and headed for his locker. It wasn't really school itself that was bad – some of the things he'd learned in his history class were fascinating, and he'd been able to sign up for Auto Shop in the afternoon, which he thought would be pretty cool – but those kids…

_You'd think being sent the Shadow Realm and Mind-Crushed would be punishment enough,_ Malik reflected, looking at the little sheet of paper with his locker combination on it as he tried to remember how many Ra-damned spins went between each number. _I am grateful – though I'll never admit it – for what the Pharaoh did. Having him Mind-Crush the evil out of both me and Marik and then put our souls back together was probably the best thing that ever happened to me. But why do they all still hate me? I admit, I'm not exactly a nice guy, but it was **Marik** who was actively homicidal, **Marik** who tried to kill them, **Marik** who had an obsession with being Pharaoh…_

_Though since technically Marik was a part of me, albeit the dark side, maybe they are right to be afraid, _he admitted silently.

Having finally managed to get his Ra-be-damned locker to open, Malik shoved his morning class books inside and grabbed his lunch sack, thankful he knew ahead of time about the lack of vegetarian options in the school cafeteria. Bad enough Isis had decided they were to stay in Japan where everyone ate dishes with raw meat and fish in them – and if you were going to eat meat, which he **never** planned on doing, why couldn't you at least **cook** it first? – but she'd also decided that he needed to go to school.

Apparently, a high school diploma was a must for getting a good job in this world. Who knew?

Grabbing the novel he'd been reading and his math book so he could brush up on his algebra, Malik headed down the hall towards the school cafeteria. He was pretty sure he had the right direction, since everyone else seemed to be heading there. He ignored the curious stares as he walked by – Ra, he knew he wasn't the only person at this school who wore jewelry, not even the only guy, and Duke Devlin wore **eyeliner** for Ra's sake – and finally made it to the lunchroom.

Standing by the doorway, Malik scanned the cafeteria for a place to sit. All the tables were pretty much full, but he did spy one table with only one occupant. Upon closer examination, the student playing 'No man is an island' and typing on a laptop proved to be Seto Kaiba.

Well, he had two options: try to find another place to sit – which would most likely prove impossible what with the lack of free seats – or hope that Kaiba wouldn't make a scene if he sat down at the other end of the CEO's table.

Decision made – since when the hell did he care what people thought of him anyway? – Malik skirted around the edge of the room, pointedly not going near the table where Yugi and his friends (or as he'd dubbed them, the 'Friendship Cult') were sitting, and soon arrived at the end of the table opposite from Kaiba.

The brunet didn't so much as flick a glance his way, but Malik knew that he'd been seen. Figuring it was best to err on the side of caution, Malik asked in a bored tone, "Mind if I sit here?"

Kaiba did deign to look at him as he answered. "As long as you don't try and involve me in any trivial conversation, you can do whatever you want," he said coolly.

Malik smirked and plopped down across the table, three chairs down from the CEO. "Whatever," he said. Placing his lunch on the table, he removed his salad and carton of milk from the insulated interior and, opening his novel to where he'd left off, proceeded to read. One hand picked up his plastic fork and dug into his lunch while his eyes scanned the pages of his book avidly.

Ten minutes later, he'd finished his lunch and the tenth chapter in his book. The Enchanted Forest Chronicles' by Patricia C. Wrede were actually pretty interesting, even if they were written for the adolescent crowd. Actually, especially since they were geared for younger readers; it was nice to read something where the bad guys weren't particularly evil and always lost, the good guys weren't always nice, but they did always win, and there wasn't a lot of violence involved.

Unlike his life.

Plus, Wrede's brand of humor had him almost laughing out loud at several points. He didn't laugh all that much, so he considered this a good selling point.

Sighing regretfully, he realized he needed to spend the rest of the lunch period studying. Tucking his bookmark back between the pages, he put his Tupperware salad container back in his lunch sack and got out his math book. Living underground had, while giving him a unique appreciation for history, and untold knowledge of dead languages, also severely stunted his education in other areas, mathematics being one of them. Thankfully he'd learned the use of the number zero, but otherwise he'd only learned rudimentary arithmetic…and he didn't think he'd ever understand what letters had to do with math.

Textbooks, unlike fictional fantasy novels, were not as engrossing as the latter. Malik had been able to tune out most of the sounds around him while he was eating since he was so involved in 'Calling on Dragons' but now that he was trying to study, a rather repetitive tapping sound kept intruding on his thoughts. Thinking that if he figured out what was making that irritating irregular clicking sound he might be able to ignore it, Malik looked up from his book and scanned the lunchroom.

Left to right, even studying the table full of the Pharaoh's fan club – who, he noticed with amusement, kept sending him wary looks – but by the time he'd made it back to the other end of his table, he still hadn't found the origin of the noise. Then he noticed Kaiba's laptop – and the fact that the clicking noises corresponded to Kaiba's fingers typing on the keys.

_Well, I don't really think 'Could you type softer?' qualifies as trivial conversation, but since I don't think he **can** type softer, I'll live with it._ With that decided, he looked back down at his math book and tried to tune out the clicking sounds.

Five minutes later he'd just about given up studying and decided to head for the library – surely it would be quieter there – when he realized that the sporadic rhythmic clicking sounds of the computer keys were actually helping him think. Mentally shrugging at this idiosyncrasy, he immersed himself in his math book and didn't surface until the warning bell rang.

Gathering his books together, he grabbed his lunch sack and threw his milk carton and fork in a nearby garbage on his way out the door. Out of the corner of his eye he noticed Kaiba stowing his laptop away in his ever-present silver briefcase and by accident, definitely not design, they ended up exiting the cafeteria at pretty much the same time. At the doorway they parted ways, and Malik headed for his locker to put his lunch sack away and grab his afternoon books.

As he slammed his locker door behind him and headed for the dreaded Math class, he thought, _Over halfway through the day; only three more classes. And no one's tried to kill me yet. School may suck, but at least it's not as bad as I feared…_

* * *

Day two of his high school career dawned just as wet, gray and dismal as the previous day. Which meant that, once again, the entire student body was crammed inside the cafeteria. Normally, quite a few of the students would head outside to the picnic tables, but what with the liquid canines and felines descending from the heavens, that wasn't an option.

Again, Kaiba was the lone occupant of the only mostly-free table. Malik wondered why it was that no one dared sit with him – he'd noticed a few people in his classes the previous afternoon giving him looks, and while at the time he'd thought it was because of his jewelry, maybe it had to do with that fact that no one else had the balls to approach Kaiba – after all, as long as you didn't talk to him, apparently, he had no problem sharing a table with you.

_Maybe I'm just the first person to try? _Malik thought as he again took a seat three chairs down and across the table from Kaiba, this time without asking permission first. He felt Kaiba's penetrating gaze rest on him for a moment, but the other boy didn't say anything.

He'd packed himself two sandwiches today, but other than that lunch went pretty much the same. He read another chapter in his book while he ate, and then started studying again. Math class hadn't been as hard as he'd feared – especially since none of the Friendship Cult were in his class – but he still didn't completely get it, so this lunch period ended up being an almost exact repeat of the previous days', only he didn't have to look for the source of the annoying clicking sound.

The bell rang, and as he gathered his things in preparation for leaving, he breathed another sigh of relief that his second day was half-over. And, again, he hadn't gotten into any fights. Most likely that had to do with the fact that he'd been enrolled as a senior in the school and the Friendship Cult was a year behind him, so they had almost no classes together, and thus, didn't see each other much.

Maybe, he thought in a rare burst of optimism, if he just took things one day at a time, he could manage to make it through the school year without being sent to the Shadow Realm…or detention.

A frown crossed his lips along with his next thought, which thrust him back into his normal pessimistic frame of mind.

Two days, or even two weeks without screwing up was one thing. But he had a little more than seven months left to get through before he'd graduate.

Ra, he'd need the luck of a thousand rabbit's feet to keep this up.


	2. Luck: Good, Bad, And Just Plain Weird

**Luck: Good, Bad, And Just Plain Weird**

* * *

For some reason, however, his luck seemed to hold. As he entered the school cafeteria for the third Monday in a row, he realized that he had, in fact, made it two weeks without any problems.

Of course, that didn't stop him from waiting for the other shoe to drop.

_Still,_ he thought as he took his customary seat at Kaiba's table. _It could be worse. **All** of the Friendship Cult could be in every single one of my classes._

A shudder ran through him at that thought, and he quickly pulled out his lunch and book, immersing himself in the words of Patricia C. Wrede to dispel the horrendous notion. Like Mercedes Lackey, she wrote stuff with an intriguing, devious plotline, though Wrede's novellas were much less…serious. The Frying Pan of Doom didn't **sound** like a very formidable weapon, but a certain malicious glee filled his heart at the thought of the Pharaoh as a giant poached egg.

He'd even be willing to eat meat for a change, if that happened. Just a nibble off a spiked lock of tri-colored, yoke-filled hair…

Stifling his snickers in his mouthful of pasta salad, he quickly finished up his lunch and turned to his studying. He'd managed to keep up with his math well enough that he didn't fear failing anymore, so he'd turned his lunchtime study period to another focus: Literature.

Their teacher had apparently decided that while the 'Great Classics' were definitely something her students needed to know, there was no reason she couldn't also throw in some mildly interesting books. If he hadn't already liked her for not making them read Romeo and Juliet aloud in class – he shuddered as he thought about having to play opposite some annoying female, pretending to be her illicit lover – he would have proclaimed her his favorite teacher for giving them this last assignment.

He'd just settled in to start reading, when he got the shock of his life; well, a mild one anyway.

Seto Kaiba talked to him.

* * *

Normally Seto Kaiba took no notice of people around him unless they directly impacted his life. Malik Ishtar had in no way come under his sphere of influence in any important capacity since Battle City, lunchtime table sharing notwithstanding.

However, despite the fact that he had not to talked the other boy, he did observe him. After all, when one shares a table with a known psychotic personage who is in possession of a Millennium Item, one either keeps one eye on them at all times, or risks death.

Or banishment to the Shadow Realm, depending on said psycho's mood.

He could not help but notice his companion seemed no longer as…crazy…as he had during Battle City. Oh, he'd heard from Yugi – or, actually, it was Yami, now that he thought of how tall the spiky-haired duelist was – that it was **Malik's** yami, Marik, that had done most of those terrible things.

Keyword there being 'most'.

Regardless of that fact, he catalogued every piece of information he could about the other boy, and what he found was…surprising.

Malik Ishtar was almost certainly a vegetarian. Not once in the past ten school days had any of his lunches contained meat. It was not conclusive evidence, but he had yet to be proved wrong.

Considering how much Bakura loved blood – and bloody meat – it appeared that either all psychos were not cut from the same mold…or Malik wasn't psychotic.

Kaiba was pretty sure it was the former.

Malik was weak in math – they shared that class, and Seto had seen him paying strict attention to the teacher, taking extensive notes, and asking questions when he didn't understand something, when he remained silent in most other classes – and had been studying it during lunch all the first week.

Malik was very studious. The ten or fifteen minutes he took to eat his lunch was shared with whatever novel he was reading, but the remainder of the lunch period was used for study.

And his book choices were interesting – he liked science fiction and fantasy novels – Patricia C. Wrede, Mercedes Lackey, and Piers Anthony had all made appearances as his mealtime reading.

Seto had paid particular attention to what books the Egyptian chose as pleasure reading simply because he'd read – and enjoyed – some of the same books himself. The third Monday Malik had sat at his table was no exception. He was, however, surprised to see Malik's routine apparently change. When he finished his lunch, instead of reaching for a textbook, he pulled out a thick, hardbound novel, the sticker on the spine declaring that it was the property of the Domino City Library.

Noticing the title of the book the other boy was reading – and remembering that they also had Literature class together, and what assignment Malik was most likely reading this book for – Seto felt the need to point out, "Mizuki-Sensei assigned us 'The Hobbit', not the Rings trilogy."

Malik started at the sound of the brunet's voice. He recovered quickly, however, nodding. "I know. I read 'The Hobbit' several years ago and it didn't take me long to reread it after she first assigned it. But I only found out about the other three books Tolkien wrote when I went to check out 'The Hobbit'."

"So you decided to read the Lord of the Rings trilogy just for fun?" Seto quirked an eyebrow in question, wondering why he was bothering to continue this conversation. True, he'd read the Rings trilogy for 'fun', but did he really care if Ishtar was doing the same? Although, if he was going to be…civil…to anyone at this school of his own free will, he could have chosen worse. Malik **was** much less…irritating than Yugi and his Friendship Freaks.

More insane, too, but maybe that was just Marik's influence.

Maybe.

Seeming confused by Seto's sudden show of friendliness, Malik nonetheless said, "Well, yes and no. Rishid really likes movies, and he's managed to talk me into the seeing the Rings triple feature on Sunday." He grimaced, rolling his eyes. "The things we do for our family, huh?"

Seto nodded, a slight, almost nonexistent smile curving his lips. Mokuba had roped him into going to see the trilogy a month ago. Not that he'd really minded, but the movie theater would not have been his first choice of venue; he'd rather not have spent all day sitting in those uncomfortable, cramped bucket seats.

"Anyway," Malik continued, "I've heard that the movie script is different from the original storyline, and I wanted to be able to compare them." He grinned wickedly. "Plus, it has the added benefit of getting me points with Mizuki-Sensei."

"You're referring to her habit of asking questions about how the assigned books compare to other books the author wrote, I take it?" Seto said dryly. He remembered distinctly the previous week's conversation comparing and contrasting 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' and 'Much Ado About Nothing'. Meddling fey versus meddling humans…

There were way too many matchmakers in the world, that was for sure. He'd almost been expecting someone to start singing 'Hello, Dolly' during the last half of Thursday's class.

Romance. Bah.

Malik chuckled. "Exactly. I figure most of the students might have seen at least one of the movies, but not many would have read the books. And if the script really is different…" He trailed off leadingly.

Seto knew what Malik was implying: the other students would make fools of themselves and the Egyptian would look like a model student in comparison. The CEO snorted. "You're evil, Ishtar."

"And you aren't?" Malik returned, a sparkle in his eyes signifying he took no offense at the once-true words.

"Touché," Kaiba quipped dryly.

Malik rolled his eyes. "This is a conversation, Kaiba; not a fencing match."

Seto quirked a brow; Ishtar knew the origin of that phrase? _Interesting…_ "Well, our words are parrying back and forth, aren't they?" he said dryly, his sense of humor being one of the things he exercised rarely.

Malik cocked his head to the side, the sparkle in his eyes flashing at the implied challenge. "I refuse to have a battle of wits with an obviously unarmed person, Kaiba," he teased.

"The ability to speak does not make you intelligent, Ishtar," Kaiba returned, his mirth concealed underneath a thinly-veiled smirk. _The ability to engage in witty banter does put you one-up on the mutt, though._

"Neither does possession of a good vocabulary, but you've obviously managed to fool quite a few people that way, haven't you?" Malik asked.

Kaiba snorted. "I am not a walking thesaurus."

"And I am not a mental case, but you'd be surprised what most people think," Malik said, smiling widely.

_Not really – until I found out about Marik, I thought much the same thing._ "Most people are idiots," Kaiba said. _But you don't need to know that._

"Present company excluded, of course," Malik qualified.

Nodding magnanimously, Kaiba agreed, "Of course." It wasn't clear whether the CEO was referring to his companion or himself.

Malik frowned. "Well, anyway…thanks for the tip," he said.

"No problem," Seto said, and he meant it. It had been an…intriguing conversation.

He **might** have to do it again sometime.


	3. Normality, Or Something Like It

**Normality – Or Something Like It**

* * *

'Sometime' came sooner than one would think. The very next day, the CEO again struck up a conversation with his lunchtime companion.

He had no clue why; maybe he'd just gotten tired of never having interesting conversations with people his own age.

Anything involving Shadow Magic, ancient Egypt, or dark spirits was exempt from that category. It may have been interesting, but it was also nerve-wracking.

"I see you're halfway through the first book already," Seto noted.

"You're talking to me today?" Malik asked, not able to keep the surprise out of his voice.

Kaiba only raised an eyebrow. "I talked to you yesterday, didn't I?"

"Yes, but…I thought it was like a case of temporary insanity, or something," Malik admitted. "I mean, it happens to me all the time, so much so that I've given up calling it temporary," he joked.

The corners of Kaiba's lips lifted marginally in what probably qualified as a smile for him. "Are you insinuating that you and I have something in common, Ishtar?"

Malik smirked. "Are you insinuating that we don't?" he returned.

It was a definitely a smile on the brunet's lips now, albeit a small one. "Probably more than most people would think," he admitted.

"Power lust and unsociable tendencies aside, of course," Malik qualified, a smile on his lips.

"Your right to remain evil has been duly noted," Seto retorted dryly.

Malik snorted. "Touché, Kaiba," he retorted.

That Tuesday (or maybe it could be considered the previous Monday, in actuality) started a whole new trend. For a few minutes after Malik finished his lunch, he and Kaiba would talk.

Well, actually it was more trading barbs and witty insults back and forth, but it was all in fun. And fun was something he hadn't had much of in his life. It was actually a nice change from his solitary lifestyle; Kaiba was pretty much the only person he talked to other than Isis and Rishid.

Actually…Kaiba **was** the only person he talked to other than Isis and Rishid.

Until the end of his second month at Domino High, that was.

* * *

"What?" Malik asked in disbelief.

"I said, do you want to hang out with us this afternoon?" Ryou asked.

One platinum eyebrow rising, Malik asked, "Are you sure you want me there?"

Ryou shrugged. "I do; I mean, none of us have seen you since Battle City."

Noticing that the other boy appeared slightly uncomfortable at the mention of that time, Malik forewent mentioning any of the events which immediately preceded it: Marik having the evil crushed out of him, being merged back together with himself… Instead, he said, "Sure you have; I sit two tables away from you in the lunchroom every day. It's just that your group wants to avoid me, and with good reason, I think." The last was admitted grudgingly; acknowledging his faults and failings to himself was one thing; to other people it was quite another.

Ryou sighed. "Look, I know you don't like most of us, but I just thought you might enjoy spending time with people your own age who you don't have to hide your secrets from."

Malik smirked. "What makes you think you know all my secrets, Ryou?"

Ryou scowled. "Are you in or out, Malik?"

Sighing, Malik said, "I'm in."

* * *

And, oh, how he wished he hadn't agreed to come.

It wasn't that the afternoon was a total loss – but at least half of it was. Those people who said half a loaf was better than none obviously had never spent half their afternoon in the Kame Game Shop watching the other five kids they were hanging out with have fun without them.

The first half of the afternoon was spent watching the two 'Mummy' movies. It was actually pretty interesting; he kept comparing the storyline to what had happened in the other's past lives back in ancient Egypt. While some of it wasn't really analogous, it was eerie how similar some of the happenings were.

He really couldn't imagine Yami taking an unwilling lover/concubine, even if that was done all the time back then, though he could imagine the Pharaoh wanting someone smart, like a scribe. And no matter how much the Pharaoh's cousin/High Priest didn't like Yami in **this** life, in the last one, Seto – or, rather, Seth – hadn't wished Atemu dead.

Sleeping with Atemu's lover behind his back **would** have been the Priest's style, however. There was little love lost between the two cousins: Atemu liked Seth fine; Seth, however, resented the Pharaoh – and his position – quite a bit.

Malik was really pissed, however, that they couldn't have actually had Imhotep speak ancient Egyptian. Arabic hadn't even been invented back in the reign of Pharaoh Seto the First; how hard would it have been to track down someone who could stick some hieratic in there to make it more believable? And the translations were abominable; 'language of the slaves', indeed.

He wasn't even Jewish, but his Hebrew was better than 'Beni's'.

And he'd been smart enough not to make jokes comparing that little weasel to Bakura. The dark spirit had sprung out of the Ring, taking over Ryou's body quicker than ever–

_Probably because he had the boy's consent this time,_ Malik privately speculated. Ryou had proven to be very protective of his other now that Bakura wasn't evil any longer. He'd undergone the same thing Marik had, only had remained his own person. And now that Ryou had predominant control of the Ring, Bakura had a **whole** lot fewer chances to cause trouble.

That didn't mean he was going to just stand by while he was insulted, however.

–and was strangling Joey almost before the blond knew what hit him.

Watching those two fight was **definitely** more fun than the watching the movie.

And almost worth sitting through the following two hours of listening to the rest of them talk, unconsciously leaving him out of the conversations. He knew they weren't doing it on purpose – well, Joey might have been – but that didn't help the fact that he was bored.

With a capital B.

Of course, he had a ready-made excuse for leaving, which had surfaced from his subconscious only moments ago. Thankfully, he'd remembered it; if he'd forgotten Isis would have had his head.

Sighing as he heard Joey and Tristan go into their third rendition of 'Which card is better?' Malik decided it was time to take his leave. He tried hard to slip away without anyone noticing but unfortunately, he wasn't sitting anywhere near the door and found himself the subject of much speculation as he headed for it.

"Where you going, Malik?" Yugi asked curiously.

Malik shrugged, defeated in his quest to get away without having to explain where he was going. Why did they care, anyway? None of them gave a shit if he was there or not. At least Kaiba put an end to their conversations when he was tired of talking. "I have to pick up Isis' cat from the Vet," he said simply. "They close in an hour, so I need to leave now." Turning to go, he stopped when another question was thrown his way, courtesy of Joey.

"Isis has a cat?" the blond asked.

Swiveling back around to face the group, Malik said, "Yeah, a little gray kitten named Shadow." He rolled his eyes at the predictability of the name. "Why?"

"What's the cat like?" Tristan asked, not giving his friend a chance to answer Malik's question.

Malik shot Taylor a confused look but nonetheless said, "Shy's okay, I guess. Doesn't make unnecessary noise or claw up the furniture, doesn't like to bite, acts friendly… It likes me better than Isis, but she's learned to live with it. I repeat, why do you want to know?"

"This is the first time you've ever really talked about yourself," Ryou said diffidently.

Malik stared at them all impassively for a moment. "This is the first time any of you have ever **asked** me about myself," he returned, before walking out the door.

* * *

Half an hour later, he'd picked up his sister's feline – who was **not** happy about the surgery he'd undergone, but then what male cat actually **wanted** to be fixed? – and was heading back to their apartment, cradling the pet carrier in his arms and trying in vain to ignore the low growls and hisses coming from inside said gray plastic container.

How he wished he'd had time last night to work on his motorcycle; he wouldn't have to walk home. As it was, he'd been faced with a choice: fixing his ride, or studying for his Chemistry test.

Chemistry won, if only because Isis would have had his head if he failed.

He was **so** whipped. And Isis was his **sister**, not his lover, which made the situation doubly bad.

Shoving away his irritating thoughts, Malik decided to take a shortcut home. In deciding to cut through Domino Park, Malik made what was quite possibly the first **smart** decision of his whole day. Unbeknownst to him, Seto had taken Mokuba out to play – and Malik walked right by them on the park's small playground.

"I know you're upset, but growling at me won't make you feel better," Malik groused at the cat. He received a hiss in response. "Well, it wasn't **my** idea; blame Isis."

"They say talking to yourself is a sign of insanity," came a low tenor voice from behind him.

Whirling around, Malik clasped the pet carrier protectively – for both Shadow **and** himself – in front of him. "Kaiba?" he sputtered. "What are you…" He cut his question off when he noticed Mokuba doing a pretty impression of a chimpanzee on the monkey bars.

"Mokuba wanted to come to the park," Seto explained needlessly. "What's in the box, Ishtar?"

"Shadow," Malik answered simply, smirking at the disconcerted – and slightly fearful – expression on the other's face. The former High Priest was obviously wondering if he had a Shadow Monster in there.

Bet he wouldn't be afraid if he knew Shy was less dangerous than Kuribo, and twice as cuddly, Malik thought mischievously. "He's Isis' cat," he elucidated.

Comprehension dawned in icy blue eyes. "Well, talking to animals…that only makes you eccentric, not insane."

Rolling his eyes, Malik asked, "Don't you have better things to do than bait your fellow students?"

Seto arched a brow. "Like what?"

Malik smirked. "Like making sure your little brother doesn't bust his head open when he falls off that thing?"

Seto turned around just in time to see Mokuba lose his grip on one of the slippery bars. The raven-haired youth fell to the ground; luckily, the sand cushioned his fall, and he rolled to his feet, laughing at his own clumsiness.

Seto's breathing calmed down – along with his racing heart rate, Malik assumed – as he saw that his little brother was all right, apparently none the worse for wear.

"Little kids are like rubber bands, Kaiba – they snap back from stuff like that," Malik said reassuringly. _Of course, getting a tattoo carved into your back at the age of ten, without the benefit of painkillers…_ Malik shivered. _That leaves more than just physical scars._

A small, not-quite-a-small crossed the CEO's lips. "Then if I refrigerated him at night, do you think he'd live longer?"

Malik blinked. _What? Oh…refrigerating rubber bands makes them last longer. I think I read that somewhere._ "I was using a metaphor, Kaiba; surely you've heard of them?" he said cuttingly.

"Actually that was a simile," Seto said triumphantly. "Using 'like' or 'as' to compare two different subjects or ideas. Metaphors treat the two subjects as identical."

Malik huffed. "Thank you for that nostalgic look back at grade school grammar, Mr. Webster. Are you sure you're not a walking thesaurus?"

"Are you sure you're not a mental case?" Kaiba returned. It was obvious he also remembered the original conversation they were paraphrasing.

"A walking pet delivery service, maybe," Malik grumbled as Shadow set about hissing his complaints again.

"What is her problem?" Kaiba asked, peering down at the ball of dark gray fluff inside the lighter gray crate.

Malik snorted. "Actually, I think the 'her' **is** Shadow's problem," he chuckled.

Seto gave the other boy an uncomprehending look.

"Shadow is **male**," Malik explained between giggles. "Or he was until yesterday."

"Ah, he got fixed?" Kaiba asked wryly.

"And he's **not** pleased about that fact," Malik agreed, wincing as a particularly vicious yowl reached his ears, causing his arms to clench tighter around the plastic crate.

"Who would be?" Kaiba asked practically.

Intrigued by the noises – and by the fact that his brother was having an apparently civil conversation with a known (to him, at least) psychotic – Mokuba left the monkey bars and came over to investigate Malik and his cargo.

"Ani-sama, what's going on?" Mokuba asked softly, coming up behind Seto. The younger Kaiba made sure to stay behind his brother at all times; he obviously didn't trust the Egyptian.

The kid may not have been a genius like his brother, but he was obviously smart enough to avoid not-so-obvious trouble.

Seto started, then after giving Malik a calculating – and evaluating – look, addressed his brother. "Mokuba, this is an…acquaintance…of mine from school. Malik Ishtar. I don't believe either of you have properly met."

Tilting his head forward in acknowledgment of the introduction, Malik said ruefully, "I'd bow, but my hands are full." He lifted the pet carrier in explanation.

Mokuba snorted, obviously downgrading Malik as less of a threat than previously thought. "No problem," he said. "What's in the box?"

_Ah, that age where they're all curiosity as well as rubber bands,_ Malik thought fondly. _I remember it well – unfortunately_. Shoving back dark thoughts of his past, Malik said, "Isis' cat, Shadow."

"He doesn't sound happy," Mokuba noted, coming around to stand in front of his brother now that it was obvious that Seto didn't consider Malik to be a threat.

Or, at least, not an active one. Which was pretty much all you could ask for in their lives.

"He's not – he just got fixed," Malik revealed.

Mokuba grimaced. "Poor little koneko."

"I definitely wouldn't want to be in his position," Seto agreed.

Smiling coyly, Malik asked, "Oh? And what objection do you have to being cradled in my arms?" _There, **that** should shut him up._

Not that he particularly **wanted** their conversation to be over. But his conversations with Kaiba were like contests – contests to see who could get the other to back off.

Kaiba almost always won.

"Not in front of my brother," Seto returned smoothly.

Malik frowned. _Damn, he's too good at this. _"How about **behind** him, then?" he suggested cheekily.

Mokuba's eyes bugged out and his gaze swiveled back and forth between his brother and Malik. He was obviously confused by what was going on.

Seto smirked. "Not anywhere in his general vicinity, Ishtar."

"Uh…could you two find a different topic to discuss?" Mokuba broke in. When both of the teenagers had turned similarly disconcerting gazes on at him, he blushed and mumbled, "You're scaring me."

Malik barked a laugh while Seto tried to muffle a snigger behind his hand.

"Gee, I didn't realize I could terrify people just by flirting with their siblings," Malik chuckled.

Seto snorted. "If you'd known that, you could have hit on Serenity instead of dueling the mutt," he agreed.

Shadow sent up another yowl, obviously inspired by their brief bought of hilarity. "Speaking of animals…" Malik groused. He sighed. "I need to get Shy home before Isis gets worried."

Checking his watch, Seto said, "And I need to get Mokuba home before it gets dark."

Mokuba screwed his face up in a grimace, obviously not wanting to leave. He shot Malik a look out of the corner of his eye, then let himself relax. As long as he got his brother away from Malik…

He could bully Seto into taking him to the park another day, after all.

After nodding at the older boy's words, Malik turned towards his apartment, walking backwards as he said a few parting words. "See you in school on Monday?"

"Hopefully without the feline," Seto returned, ushering Mokuba in the direction opposite from the Egyptian, towards the parking lot.

Malik smirked as he watched the two Kaibas walk away. That had been almost…normal.

Since when did he do normal?

Shrugging, Malik headed for home. He paused, however, as a thought flitted through his head.

_I wonder exactly when I started thinking of Domino City as 'home'?_

He resolutely ignored any possibility that the answer had something to do with Kaiba.

After all, just because he'd found a 'friend' of sorts…that didn't mean anything.

Did it?


	4. Therapy Isn't In My Job Description

**Therapist To Insane Megalomaniacs Isn't In My Job Description**

****

* * *

**Two Weeks Later**

****

* * *

Well, normal was one thing, but that still didn't change his circumstances. After all, normal teenagers went to school, right? And Malik still had to go to classes. While it wasn't pure torture, the best part was lunch.

And no, unlike Joey Wheeler, it wasn't because he got to **eat**.

It was because of Seto Kaiba.

Malik refused to think about why he liked spending time with the CEO so much. That way lay madness, and he'd already fulfilled his lifetime quota with Marik.

It was…**normal**…to enjoy spending time with your friends, right?

And even if it wasn't, that was the last thought he allowed himself on the subject.

* * *

Normal definitely wasn't all it was cracked up to be.

Glaring at his car, Seto sighed. It was…**normal**…he supposed, to have car trouble.

But if normal people didn't enjoy it, why should he be any different?

He knew there was gas in the tank, and the oil was changed regularly. The lights hadn't been left on – there was a safety feature that turned them off after fifteen minutes – so the battery was okay. Beyond that, he had no clue what was going on.

A low chuckle from behind him caused him to whirl around.

And he came face-to-face to Malik Ishtar.

Was it normal for him to be…**glad**…to see the other?

He supposed not. But then, when had he ever been normal?

"Having car trouble?" Malik asked.

Seto's grin was sour. "Master of stating the obvious, aren't you, Ishtar?"

Malik shrugged. "For all I know, you locked your keys in there – and while that's **trouble**, it's not specific to your vehicle."

Glowering at the shorter boy, Seto dangled his key ring from his right hand.

Malik's merriment was clearly evident in his reply. "My mistake."

Seto's response was a low growl as he went back to contemplating his car. He supposed he'd have to call someone…

Sighing, he reached into his pocket for his cell phone, only to be stopped by six little words.

"Mind if I take a look?"

On eyebrow raised, Seto said, "Do you know what you're doing?"

Malik's response was yet another shrug and the words, "More than you do, I assume."

"That's comforting," Seto said sardonically, but he waved the blond over.

Malik moaned theatrically as he placed his backpack on top of a nearby bench. "Can't you respond to any inquiry without using biting sarcasm?" He undid the snaps on his school uniform jacket and shrugged it off, leaving him in only a tight pale purple shirt. He dropped it on top of his backpack and headed back over to the car.

"Sarcasm is the safe alternative to expressing anger," Kaiba quipped. "Or so I've been told."

"By who?" Malik asked, walking around to the front of the Mercedes. "And can you pop the hood?"

Unlocking the driver's side door, Seto pressed the hood release lever as he answered, "By Mokuba. He has this huge book of quotes, and he memorizes a page full each week. He's made it up to the Ps so far, and last week he read that one by Richard North Patterson and decided it was advice I needed to follow."

"And why was that?" Malik asked, voice muffled as he was now buried inside the engine block.

Seto rolled his eyes; even though the other couldn't see him, the gesture was apparent in his tone of voice. "For years he's been harping on me to make friends. He thinks I'm not nice enough to people, and that's why I drive them away."

"If people are so sensitive that they can't take a little heat, they then need to learn to toughen up. The world is not a nice place," Malik said absently. "Try and start the car, okay? See if the lights pop on."

Seto complied, and though the dashboard lit up when the key was turned, the engine remained silent. "I agree, but Mokuba sees things differently," Seto replied. "He wants to believe in the innate goodness of humankind. His big thing is trying to get me to spend more time with people my own age. To no avail, until recently, since he'd been trying to get me to befriend Yugi and his followers."

Malik snorted as he examined the interior of the engine. "Fat chance of that happening," he mumbled. "You can turn it off now," he added.

"Exactly," Seto agreed, removing the key from the ignition and climbing back out of the car. "He'd just about given up on me making friends when **you** showed up. And apparently he's decided that while I **do **need more friends, I'm not doing a very good job of it if **you're** the only one I've made."

"You're kidding," Malik said on a laugh. The sound of metal against metal was heard as he was obviously shifting something around inside the engine.

"Nope," Seto said succinctly, masking his worry over what the Egyptian was going to his car in his abrupt tone. "He said, and I quote: 'Did you have to take up with someone who's even crazier than you are?'"

"Hey, I resemble that remark!" Malik protested, laughing face popping up over the raised hood.

"You surely do," Seto agreed dryly.

Malik shook his head and slammed the hood back down. "Anyway… I know what's wrong with your car."

Seto's ears perked up at this. "Oh?"

"Yeah, you have a dead starter," Malik told him.

"Which means?" Seto asked impatiently.

"You ain't goin' nowhere until you get it replaced," Malik said, mouth pursed into a grin. "Better call a tow truck."

Seto's eyes narrowed and he sighed. "That's what I was going to do **before** you showed up," he grumbled, though there was nonetheless a hint of appreciation in his voice.

"At least now you know what's wrong with it so if they try and overcharge you you can sue," Malik pointed out, picking up his jacket and putting it back on.

Seto noticed that when Malik leaned over to grab his jacket, his shirt rode up in the back, and he could see what looked like…a tattoo?

Shrugging off his questions, Seto picked up the conversational thread again. "They wouldn't dare," he hissed, venomous rage in his tone. The last person who'd tried to screw him over…

Well, actually, the last person who'd tried to screw him over was Marik. The Big Five didn't count, really, since A) they were a group, not one person, and B) his board of directors **always** tried to screw him over.

They just normally didn't come so close to killing people.

Casting aside those thoughts, Seto flipped open his cell phone and dialed his mechanic, arranging to have the car picked up and towed. He was just about to call his driver to come and pick him up when he realized three things.

One: Malik had not taken his motorcycle to school today, so he would obviously be walking home.

Two: And he himself didn't actually live all that far from here, so he **could** walk.

Which led him to conclusion number three: They could walk home together. And he could spend more time with Malik.

Refusing to think about why that made him so…**happy**…Seto just decided, for once, to go with the flow.

"Well, since we both are apparently walking home today…and we both live in the same direction…do you want to walk together?" Seto asked, acting as if he didn't care one way or the other if Malik assented.

Because even if the Ishtar didn't agree, they'd still end up walking together. Seto had to get home **some** way, after all. And he wasn't about to walk in the other direction just because his presence might make Malik uncomfortable.

"Sure," Malik agreed blithely. He grabbed his backpack, Seto grabbed his briefcase, and they started walking.

A few minutes passed in a strangely comfortable silence. Seto was never one for wasted opportunities, and he knew that he and his walking companion would be parting ways at the park. So he should make the most of the fifteen minutes they had together.

"You seemed pretty confident you knew what was wrong with my car," Seto said leadingly.

Malik shrugged. "I'm taking Auto Shop this semester," he said dismissively

"Still…"

"And I used to do the same thing down at the Gear Head Garage on Sakura Street," Malik admitted grudgingly.

"You have a job?" Seto asked disbelievingly.

"Not anymore," Malik growled.

Seto raised an eyebrow, a silent inquiry for more information.

"I **used** to have a job as a mechanic; working on motorcycles mostly," Malik said morosely.

"What happened?" Seto asked. In most cases his gut reaction would be 'What did you do to get fired?' but he was slowly coming around to the idea that he shouldn't automatically assume ninety-nine percent of the people in the world were idiots, and he should give them the benefit of the doubt.

Or at least the ones he didn't want to piss off. And for some reason, he didn't want to piss off Malik.

And it had nothing to do with the fact that the Egyptian used to be psychotic, either.

Most **normal** people didn't want to piss of their friends, right?

Or, at least, not **too** much.

Malik sighed heavily and shifted his backpack to his left arm. "The guy who owned the place was getting too old to handle the day-to-day stuff so his son took over as manager. And the son was some jackass who wanted to lay off all the 'unskilled' labor and hire people with actual training. And I ask you, what does a guy who took a six-month course have that I don't, other than a piece of paper saying that he passed said course?" Malik demanded. "I mean, I practically **built** my own motorcycle from spare parts, and just because I didn't take a few useless night classes, the guy lays me off."

"That's rough," Seto commiserated. And he meant it; plenty of the people who worked in his R&D Department weren't even college graduates yet, but they did most of the imaginative and creative work.

"Yeah, well," Malik said, slightly mollified. A wide grin crossed his lips. "He's regretting it now, though; he's lost almost twenty-five percent of his customers, since his 'trained technicians' aren't as good as the 'unskilled' labor."

Seto's only response to that was a thinly-veiled smirk.

"I actually think I could have been pretty happy working as a mechanic for the rest of my life," Malik admitted. Tossing Seto a grin, he said, "I mean, I know it's not as glamorous as being CEO of your own company; really just a blue collar job with no room for advancement, but I liked it. I enjoyed working on the motorcycles."

"I enjoy designing the games more than running KaibaCorp," Seto revealed. "But they go hand in hand, for me."

"With great power comes great responsibility," Malik quoted.

"Though thankfully not always a red and blue Lycra bodysuit," Seto quipped.

Malik chuckled. "Yes indeed – though I do think you would look good in skintight clothes, red really isn't your color."

Choosing to disregard the implied compliment, Seto said drolly, "So I've been told."

"Oh, really? By who?" Malik asked curiously.

"By Mokuba – for some reason he doesn't like it when I'm bleeding," Seto joked.

The joke obviously fell flat, though, since Malik's smile slipped. His face paled and he looked down at the ground. "Yeah, well…you're not the only one," he said finally.

Cursing himself for having apparently stepped on an emotional land mine – and who knew **Ishtar** of all people had them? – Seto waited until another lull came up to say, "So was it just that you didn't have time to take the night classes, or did you just not want to?"

It was a noticeable change of subject, but Malik seemed to appreciate it.

"I never wanted to go to school in the first place, but Isis made me," Malik said. "I don't think I need to know algebra, or how to use fancy tools to fix a car the same way you use a socket wrench."

"I find that ironic," Seto said.

"You do?"

"Considering that you wanted to take over the world, I would have thought you'd like power, no matter what kind."

Malik sent the other boy an uncomprehending look. "What **are** you talking about, Kaiba?"

Seto smirked. "Knowledge is power, Ishtar. Haven't you heard?"

Malik snorted. "And power corrupts. So what? You're saying study hard, be evil?"

Seto was dumbfounded. The other's train of reasoning was actually…logical.

Sort of.

If you considered insanity logical.

Shaking his head, Seto mumbled, "Never mind. I can feel my IQ dropping as we speak."

"Oh?" Malik asked, one platinum eyebrow raised in inquiry.

"Yes, apparently your stupidity is catching," Seto quipped.

Malik pursed his lips in a frown. "That wasn't very nice, Kaiba," he sulked, a mock-pout on his face.

"You expect me to be nice?" Seto asked curiously.

"Expect? No," Malik answered. "But one can always hope."

"Well, I wouldn't bet money on it," Seto said dryly.

"Hope, like very little else in this life, is free," Malik said solemnly. "Just like your insults," he dug.

Seto snorted and rounded on the other boy. "So you're saying I should charge you for each invective I lob at you?"

"I'm saying that your insults are a service you provide free of charge, Kaiba, that's all," Malik said, knowing he'd finally gotten the other's goat.

"Why you…" Kaiba hissed playfully and lunged at Malik.

"Catch me if you can!" Malik called, racing off towards the park.

"You can run but you can't hide, Ishtar!" Kaiba yelled, giving chase. He was acting like a kid…

Of course, he **was** a kid, so maybe this was something else in his life that had become normal.

Pelting down the sidewalks toward the park – which they had already been within blocks of – Kaiba soon caught up to the other boy, the Egyptian's quick feet no match for his longer legs. He was only a few yards behind Malik when his prey decided to change tactics.

Malik headed for the small stand of trees at the edge of the park, and, putting on a burst of speed, soon broke through the bushes at the edge of the wooded glade.

Malik was quick, and Seto knew that if the blond got much farther into the forest, he'd lose him. Speeding up, he soon overtook the other boy, grabbing onto Malik's jacket and yanking him back towards himself.

The move threw them both off-balance, and they ended up pressed against the trunk of a nearby tree, Malik with his back to it, Seto facing him. Raising his eyes to meet Malik's, Seto's breath caught in his throat.

The other boy was beautiful. How had he never noticed that before?

White-blond hair in disarray, with leaves and twigs caught in it, panting hard from running and laughing simultaneously, eyes dancing with lively humor…

Suddenly they were face-to-face, lavender eyes staring into blue, breathless laughter dying out on their lips.

Kami, he hoped Malik didn't kill him for this.

And since when was he normal enough to take stupid chances, anyway?

Reaching out with one hand, moving almost in slow-motion, Kaiba hardly dared to breathe as he cupped the back of Malik's head and bent down the scant few inches needed to kiss him.

* * *

Malik was stunned; he'd never expected this to happen, even if secretly, he had wanted it to. He spent the first few moments of his very first kiss paralyzed, before he realized that that might be taken as a rejection and leaned into Kaiba's soft lips.

It started out as only a slight, whisper-soft pressure, soon building as they each exerted more carnal force. The kiss wasn't a battle for dominance, as he would have thought; instead, they each took turns being in control, mouths slightly open and caressing each other with slick softness. Warm, wet, sticky sweet…

Ra, if he'd known kissing was like this he wouldn't have shunned romance for so long.

Kaiba tasted like some sort of exotic spice; cloves, maybe, or cinnamon…

He never wanted it to end.

But, unfortunately, all good things – and this kissing was a **very** good thing, all told, Malik thought – must come to an end.

When they pulled apart, Malik almost whimpered at the loss. _Fuck, when did I get so…needy? _he thought moodily, blinking up at the boy in front of him, glad to see that Seto looked as confused as he felt. "Kaiba, what…" Malik was completely and utterly lost.

"You can call me Seto, if you want," Kaiba said softly, one hand playing with a lock of the Egyptian's almost unnaturally blond hair.

"I…only if you call me Malik," Malik bargained.

Seto nodded slowly, a calculating gleam in his eye. "All right," he agreed.

They stood there for long moments, just looking at each in a comfortable silence, until a sudden gust of cold wind brought them out of their reverie.

"I…I should get home; Isis and Rishid will be worried," Malik said.

"I should go, too, Mokuba's probably waiting for me," Seto said.

"See you at school on Monday?" Malik asked, trying to keep the plaintiveness from his tone. Ra, enjoying Seto's company was one thing – especially considering this…relationship?…they seemed to have embarked on – but the thought of being apart from the CEO for two whole days actually sent a pang of sadness zinging through his heart.

Was that love? Or something like it?

"Monday," Seto agreed warmly, the timbre of his voice sending an involuntary shiver down Malik's spine.

"Okay," Malik agreed breathlessly, and he watched as Seto walked away, ducking underneath low-hanging branches and dodging roots in the ground.

Sliding down the tree trunk until his butt hit the ground, Malik just sat there for a minute, thinking. He needed some time to pull himself together before he headed home.

Even though nothing had been said on the subject, he liked to think that…maybe…he and Seto were now dating.

Forget the fact that he hadn't realize until ten minutes ago he apparently had the hots for Seto Kaiba… Since when was he gay?

Ra, maybe he should take his sister's advice and get therapy.


	5. Alterations In Everyday Life

**Alterations In Everyday Life**

****

* * *

Things change. This is an undeniable fact of life.

But change is not always bad. That just doesn't mean it's necessarily **good**, either. Some things just **are**.

Like Malik and Seto's…relationship.

Neither of them talked about it at school on Monday. Malik was wondering if it was just a momentary aberration on Kaiba's part – and why did that thought send a pang of loneliness through his heart? – and Kaiba, for all his way with words, had no clue what to say to Malik.

He liked Malik – but what the hell did that mean? He certainly had no clue.

So, for all intents and purposes, they were at a stalemate.

Luckily, they had their 'friendship' – or what one would call it – to fall back on. Falling back into their old, familiar 'lunchtime taunt' sessions was…comforting.

It **was** comforting to know that not **everything** had changed.

* * *

It was now month three of Malik's high school career, two weeks since that fateful kiss he and Seto had shared in the park.

Malik was getting tired of tiptoeing around that rather volatile topic with the CEO, never mentioning it for fear of…well, for fear of **something**. Change? Maybe. In his experience, when things changed, it was normally for the worse.

But then again, things had changed greatly for him since Battle City, and most of it wasn't **too **bad. School still mostly sucked, but Seto's friendship more than made up for it.

Friendship… That was something new to him. As was…whatever it was that that kiss meant.

He had never been a particularly patient person – which had caused him no end of problems in the past – and he wanted answers, damnit!

Did Seto feel something for him other than just a momentary lust?

Even if it was just a **not**-so-momentary lust?

He was getting tired of wondering, and so conspired to get Seto into a situation where he could ask his questions.

Luck was with him on that Friday; the day presented him with a golden opportunity.

Well, actually, more of a damp, gray opportunity; it was raining. Pouring buckets, as a matter of fact; the downpour almost reminded Malik of that American saying 'raining cats and dogs'.

He had to choke back giggles at the thought of miniature furry Joeys and Setos falling with the raindrops. Joey was a dog if he'd ever seen one; Kaiba, however, for all that he loved dragons, was like a cat.

Sleek, dangerous, only let in people he thought worthy of the honor…

And no one owned him, though he was very possessive of what he considered his.

Malik wondered if he himself was included in that category as one of Kaiba's possessions? And why did he not mind the thought of being possessed?

Shaking off his whimsical thoughts, Malik hurried to catch up with Seto at the front of the school. The CEO was standing underneath the overhang, staring out at the falling rain.

Or, actually, **glaring** out at the falling rain.

"Don't have an umbrella?" Malik asked. He smirked as the other boy whirled around. It was amazing how easy it was for him to sneak up on Seto.

Malik wondered why that was, since Seto seemed to sense anyone else coming up behind him almost before they had headed in his direction.

"No, I don't," Seto said gruffly. "The radio said it was going to be sunny today."

Malik scoffed. "The weatherman says that everyday that there aren't dark clouds hanging overhead." Unzipping the flap on his backpack, he pulled out his collapsible umbrella, pressing the button on the handle so the purple and gray striped canopy would pop out. "You can share mine, if you want," he offered, gesturing with the now-open umbrella.

Seto shot him a quick glance, then nodded once. "Thanks," he said softly, and ducked underneath the vinyl awning.

"No problem," Malik said.

They fell silent, walking in step to the student parking lot. None of the students had designated parking spaces, but most people had one spot that they almost always ended up in; Seto was no exception. When they reached the CEO's car, Seto turned to unlock the door, before pausing.

"Did you drive in today?" Seto asked. "I don't remember seeing your motorcycle over by the bike rack."

Malik shook his head. "No; the brakes have been giving me trouble, so I left it at home." That was true; while he'd forgone driving his precious bike for three days a few weeks back, that had been because one of the headlights had gone out and he'd had to look all over to find a replacement. The trouble with the brakes had shown up yesterday as he was driving home, so he'd walked to school today.

Lucky him – that is, if Seto acted as Malik thought he would…

Seto appeared to be debating with himself, but it was only a moment before he offered, "Why don't I give you a ride home, then?"

_Bingo!_ Malik thought, smothering the grin that wanted to leap onto his lips. "That would be great, thanks," he said instead, voice calm.

Minutes later, they were both ensconced in the padded leather interior of Seto's Mercedes. Malik gave Seto directions to his apartment building and then sat back, just enjoying the plush seat for a few moments

"Nice car," Malik said at length, for lack of any better conversation openers.

"It gets me where I need to go," Seto said.

"Speaking of going places…" Malik started.

One brunet eyebrow rose. "Yes?"

_Here goes nothing…or, rather, everything. _"Where exactly is our relationship going?"

Seto's only response was three fast blinks. "What do you mean?" he asked, and though his tone was pleasant enough, Malik could hear the telltale note of strain wrapped around the calm words.

"I mean that you kissed me two weeks ago and I'd like to know why," Malik stated firmly.

Seto was silent for a moment, driving through the quiet streets, the sound of rain falling then being kicked up by the car's tires the only noise. "It seemed like a good idea at the time," Seto said finally, not once looking over at his passenger.

"And now you regret it?" Malik asked, unable to keep the note of disappointment out of his question. After having been given a taste – no pun intended – of what he was missing by not embracing – again, no pun intended – what it was like to be more than friends with someone, Malik wasn't sure he could do without it.

Being friends with Seto was great. It was more than he'd thought possible for his life, to actually have one real friend.

But to be Seto's…boyfriend? Significant other?

Lover?

Well, that was more than he'd ever dared hope for.

But now that it had been brought to mind…

Well, he'd told Seto that one could always hope. And that's what he was doing right now, with all his heart. Dark, blackened, and scarred by life though the organ may have been.

"Not…exactly."

"And what does that mean?" Malik asked testily, his never-extensive patience threatening to run out at the other teen's reticence.

Seto sighed and flicked a glance at Malik out of the corner of his eye. "I don't regret it," he said, voice faltering as he ended with, "but this changes things, now."

"All life is change, Seto," Malik said compassionately, his heart swelling at the reassurance that Kaiba wasn't playing with his feelings.

Not that he'd ever thought that was the CEO's style, but no one knew better than he that despite how outwardly responsible and mature someone was, that didn't negate the fact that they were still a teenager, still learning how to live and interact with other people.

Isis and Rishid had been taking care of him for years, after all. He found it odd that while they were the ones forced into playing parent at too early an age, he was the one who'd ended up the least normal.

"True," Seto agreed, and that was the last word said on the subject for several minutes.

"So what do you want to do now?" Malik asked at length, unable to keep his questions bottled up a moment longer.

"What do you want to do?" Seto returned, and it was only because he knew Seto well enough to know that the brunet was uncomfortable with this situation that kept Malik from screaming in frustration.

"I want to stop playing games, and…give it a shot," Malik replied.

"'It'?" Seto asked archly.

"Don't play dumb, **Seto**," Malik snapped, using the other's first name as a reminder of what had been said two weeks previous.

Seto flinched slightly and sent a look of apology to the Egyptian.

"A relationship," Malik said, voice soft as he answered the other's original question. "What do you think about that?"

"I think…I'd like that," Seto revealed, twisting around in his seat to look the other boy in the eye as he answered.

It was only then that Malik noticed they'd been sitting in the parking lot of his apartment for the past several minutes.

"So would I," Malik said on a whisper. His breath caught in his throat as Kaiba leaned closer. Meeting the brunet halfway – and cursing the seatbelt that pulled taut across his neck; he'd be sure to have a bruise there tomorrow, though right now he couldn't care less – Malik threw himself whole-heartedly into the kiss.

Ra, he'd **missed** this. How was that possible when he'd only ever kissed Seto that once?

Malik normally would have been put out by these feelings of longing, but was too caught up in the moment to really care. His disconcertion at feeling a yearning for the other's touch was soon put to rest, however, when he noticed that Seto seemed to be enjoying the kiss just as much – if not more – than he himself was.

Apparently it was normal to want this. Or, if it wasn't, at least both he and Seto were the same kind of **ab**normal.

By the time they broke apart, both of them were panting for breath, and Malik's neck was starting to send up a protest. It **really** hurt. No surprise, since they'd been kissing so long the windows had fogged up.

Not that he thought Seto could have missed the fact that his seatbelt was strangling him but, Malik was a bit dumfounded when the brunet just reached over and undid the belt, carefully slipping the woven band from around his throat.

That was kind of…nice. Very thoughtful. That Seto had noticed, and cared enough to try to make him more comfortable.

Other than Isis and Rishid, no one in his whole life had cared about his feelings.

"You okay?" Seto asked softly, one hand coming up to massage the red marks on Malik's throat.

_Talk about nice… Is this what romance is about? Caring about people?_

_I could get to like that._ "Yeah, I'm…good," Malik said, voice cracking slightly on the last word as Seto's fingers brushed against his clavicle. Who knew his neck was an erogenous zone?

Certainly not Malik.

A small smirk settled on Seto's lips as he realized what effect his actions were having on the other. "Good," he said huskily, and swooped down to capture Malik's unsuspecting lips again.

Malik moaned as Seto's tongue tapped against his lower lip, asking for and receiving entrance. Almost shyly, Malik met Seto's tongue with his own, slightly astonished by how good it felt to be doing this. One would think that tasting someone else's spit wasn't the nicest thing in the world.

But then, one would be wrong.

Leaning up into the kiss, Malik broke away only long to catch his breath, before diving back in. He knew eventually this kiss would have to end; he'd have to get out of the warm – now slightly steamy because of all the body heat being exchanged – car and try to run inside without getting too wet.

Fat chance of that.

Seto, too, would have to leave, go back to his own home.

And they wouldn't be able to see each other until Monday.

So Malik was determined to make the most of these precious few minutes.

Not that he was actually coherent enough to think any of this, mind.

Mostly what was running through his brain was: _Oh, Ra, this is good…_

And it was.

Very.


	6. When I Take Over The World

**When I Take Over The World I Plan To Live Happily Ever After**

****

* * *

_A complete (and expanded) copy of the Evil Overlord list can be found here: www. eviloverlord .com/lists/overlord .html_

_

* * *

_

Monday finally came, and Malik was ecstatic.

Not that he'd ever admit to feeling anything more than a minor pleasure that he'd get to see Seto again.

At least, outside of his head.

He was glad to see that their changed relationship hadn't changed **everything**. It was good to know that they could still insult each other without either of them blowing a fuse just because they were 'together' now. They still had their lunchtime 'fights' – only there was more veiled innuendo thrown in, like that afternoon when he'd run into Seto and Mokuba in the park.

That wasn't always good, though. Flirting with Seto during lunchtime was fun; having a hard-on throughout Algebra class wasn't.

Hey, he was a teenager. And while he might never have been a **horny** one until he'd met Seto, his hormones had finally kicked in and were making up for lost time.

Kissing was **damn** fun. Even more so than terrorizing hapless mortals.

Of course, just because they were quote-unquote 'dating' now didn't mean it was all hearts and roses.

Hell, neither of them liked hearts, and roses were unneeded romance.

But then again, their idea of romance was lending each other fantasy novels, trying to figure out how many different versions there were of the 'Animaniacs' theme song, and attempting to one-up each other in insult contests.

Their relationship was anything but normal. He supposed one could say it was on the fringes of normality. If normality was completely **insane**…

All Malik knew was that even the semblance of normality they had was enough to make him feel…not such a freak.

And he liked that. A **lot**.

Almost as much as he liked Seto.

Was that love?

* * *

A month from the next Monday, Seto's conversational gambit was a bit different. The CEO was fond of asking off-the-wall questions.

Good thing Malik was fond of answering them.

"If you had to have any weapon in any known universe other than the Millennium Rod…" Seto started.

"Yes?" Malik prompted when the other didn't continue.

"Which one **wouldn't** it be?" Seto asked, a smirk on his lips.

"Glarundel," Malik replied promptly. _Seto should remember that one, after all he did lend me that duo of novels._

Seto's eyebrow rose above eyes that were dancing with held back merriment. "Glarundel, the Sword That Was Useless, guaranteed to render the bearer vulnerable?"

"Do you have a photographic memory or something? Because that's exactly the wording used in the book," Malik said, referring to Nick O'Donohoe's 'The Magic and the Healing'.

"Actually, yes, I do," Seto replied, startling the blond.

"Wow…no wonder you always get top marks," Malik said, impressed. A smile flickered across his face. "I guess that's how you always know the stats of every Duel Monsters cards, ne?"

"Memorization is a wonderful device," Seto said dismissively.

"And it's only one of several **tools** you have at your disposal, ne?" Malik asked, a salacious grin on his face. _Ah, double entendres…flirting was never so much fun._

Never mind the fact that he'd never flirted with anyone besides Seto…

"Says the man who wields the Millennium **Rod**," Seto riposted, a cocked eyebrow lending him a rather brazen air.

"Touché," Malik quipped.

Seto sighed theatrically at the formulaic line. "Not smart enough to think of an original comeback, Malik?"

"What, you don't think I'm smart?" Malik asked, mock-astounded.

"Yes, but I think you're more evil than anything else," Seto returned dryly.

"Hmmph!" Malik sniffed and turned away in feigned distress.

"But evil on you is very sexy," Seto added, inching over on the bench they were sitting.

Malik smiled. _Got him right where I want him._ He was **so** glad they had decided to eat outside, where no one else was around. Even if it was a little cold, Seto could keep him warm. Turning around, Malik replied, "Ditto," and he pounced on his boyfriend.

He'd much rather make out with Seto than study, any day.

* * *

Snickering quietly as he read the e-mail in his inbox, Malik didn't hear Seto until the CEO was almost on top of him.

And no, not like **that**.

Unfortunately…

"What's so funny, Malik?" Seto murmured, dropping down next to him at the computer desk in his home office. They'd been dating for about two and a half months now, and the Egyptian had gotten into the habit of coming over to the mansion in the afternoons. Malik had his own key in case Seto had to work late. This afternoon was no exception for the brunet, for all that it was Sunday.

CEOs didn't get that many days off.

"This e-mail you sent me," Malik replied between chuckles, gesturing at the screen. "Where did you find this, Seto? It's the funniest thing I've ever read."

Seto's brow furrowed. "E-mail?" he asked. "I didn't send you any e-mail."

Frowning slightly, Malik said, "It's from your e-mail address: SKaiba at KaibaCorp dot net."

Seto looked at the 'From' line of the e-mail Malik was in the process of reading and sighed. "Mokuba must have hacked my password again. He does it periodically to keep in practice."

Malik snorted. "You're a bad influence on him, Seto."

Shrugging nonchalantly, Seto said, "What am I supposed to do? Threaten to send him to bed without supper? Besides, at least when he hacks my e-mail, I know what he's doing. And he's never sent porn links to my business associates."

"I'll bet he's thought about it, though," Malik countered.

Growling low in his throat in a way that made Malik certain that Kaiba agreed with him, Seto remained silent for long moments. Finally the brunet asked, "What exactly did he send you that was so funny, anyway?"

"It's a list. 'The Top One Hundred Things I'd Do If I Ever Became An Evil Overlord,'" Malik recited.

Seto froze, a smile twitching at his lips. "You're kidding."

"Nope," Malik said. "I think number thirty is the funniest so far."

"Oh?" Seto asked, peering over the blond's shoulder at the e-mail.

Adjusting his position so Seto could read, Malik said, "Yeah. Thirty is, 'All bumbling conjurers, clumsy squires, no-talent bards, and cowardly thieves in the land will be preemptively put to death. My foes will surely give up and abandon their quest if they have no source of comic relief.'"

Stifling a laugh, Seto said, "That's funny. But I like number forty: 'I will be neither chivalrous nor sporting. If I have an unstoppable superweapon, I will use it as early and as often as possible instead of keeping it in reserve.'"

"That one's good, but I would have thought you'd like fifty better," Malik replied.

Scrolling down the list, Seto barked a laugh. "'My main computers will have their own special operating system that will be completely incompatible with standard IBM and Macintosh powerbooks.' Yes, that's definitely what I'd do if I ever became an Evil Overlord."

"Computers are all good and well for you, but what about me?" Malik asked. "I spent the first half of my life in an underground cult in Egypt; it took me months to learn how to use a computer."

Seto smirked. "Number fifty-five. You could have a place in my organization."

Rereading the aforementioned number, Malik frowned. "'The deformed mutants and oddball psychos will have their place in my Legions of Terror. However, before I send them out on important covert missions that require tact and subtlety, I will first see if there is anyone else equally qualified who would attract less attention.' So do you consider me a deformed mutant or an oddball psycho?"

"I personally think you are neither deformed…" here Seto ran a hand teasingly along Malik's thigh, "…nor psychotic. "But what do you think?" Seto asked.

"I think that number sixty is eerily like what Mokuba pulled with your e-mail," Malik said cheekily, evading both Seto's words and his roaming hands.

"Number sixty?"

Malik nodded. "It ties in to number twelve on the list: 'One of my advisors will be an average five-year-old child. Any flaws in my plan that he is able to spot will be corrected before implementation.'"

Seto gave the other boy an inscrutable look before reading number sixty. "'My five-year-old child advisor will also be asked to decipher any code I am thinking of using. If he breaks the code in less than thirty seconds, it will not be used. Note: this also applies to passwords,'" Seto read slowly. He involuntarily chuckled and turned to the blond. "Mokuba is twelve, Malik, not five," he pointed out.

"But when you were five, I bet you could break passwords just as easily as he can," Malik countered.

"True," Seto said modestly. "And I'm even better now."

Malik huffed at the other's arrogance.

Going back to reading the list, Seto continued, "I think fifty-nine fits Noah, though."

Flicking a glance at the screen, Malik coughed to cover his laugh. "'I will never build a sentient computer smarter than I am?'"

"Exactly," Seto said. "Though Noah was human first, it still wasn't a good idea to give him almost unlimited power."

"Speaking of unlimited power… How about sixty-four? I think that's advice Pegasus should have taken," Malik said smugly.

Seto snorted. "'I will see a competent psychiatrist and get cured of all extremely unusual phobias and bizarre compulsive habits which could prove to be a disadvantage.' Yeah, I think he should have taken that advice. His obsession with that damn rabbit was just creepy."

"No argument here," Malik agreed. "But since you mentioned obsessions… What about the last one?"

"Number one hundred?" Seto asked, as he scanned down the list. He chortled, barely able to contain his mirth. "'Finally, to keep my subjects permanently locked in a mindless trance, I will provide each of them with free unlimited Internet access.'"

"Ingenious, I think," Malik said, smiling. "Computers are the twenty-first century version of television. Otherwise known as the 'Boob Tube'."

"Indeed," Seto agreed, shaking his head. "I wonder who came up with this list?"

"The world – and us – may never know," Malik said solemnly.

Seto rolled his eyes.

* * *

A month from the following Monday, Malik again graced the Kaiba mansion with his presence. Seto had actually taken a rare afternoon off, and he and Malik were hanging out in his indoor pool.

Neither of them asked why the other kept their shirt on. They were too busy having another insult contest.

"Is it your life's ambition to annoy every single person you meet, or is it just something you do to pass the time when you're not trying to take over the world?" Malik demanded.

"I thought **you** were the one who wanted to take over the world," Seto returned dryly.

Malik huffed. "No, just Egypt," he said seriously, his tone playful. "But I decided that being an evil super villain was not for me."

"Oh, really?" Seto asked, one eyebrow raised.

Nodding solemnly, Malik pronounced, "Too much paperwork."

Seto's snort was almost inaudible, but the Egyptian still heard it.

Malik grinned. He and Seto had more in common than at first glance. For instance, there was this really funny game they'd come up with one day about a month after they got together – neither of them were sure who started it – but Malik had taken to calling it the 'Evil Villain's Catch Phrase' game. Basically, they tried to one-up each other with witty and/or dramatic phrases about taking over the world.

He knew if anyone they knew ever caught them playing it, they'd think he and Seto were crazy – not that they weren't, but that's beside the point – but to them it was just fun. Sort of like a stress reliever.

Actually, Mokuba **had** caught them one day. He'd rolled his eyes and quipped, "I never thought I'd ever see another person with as deranged a sense of humor as you, ani-sama," before skipping out of further conversation.

Apparently that was Mokuba's version of his blessing on their relationship.

If the kid wasn't so fond of the Friendship Cult, Malik thought he could actually grow fond of the little squirt.

"Okay, so you're seriously planning to take over the world and during your speech to the doomed populous, you say…?" Seto prompted, flicking a few drops of water at the other boy to grab his attention.

Malik frowned and shook his head to get rid of the water, an expression on his face rather like that Shadow wore whenever he'd just had an unwanted bath. Sticking out his tongue at Seto, he smirked and said in a deep, guttural voice rather reminiscent of his former yami, "It doesn't matter at what time or place they founded this city or country – I **will** one day rule this world, and all that will matter is how **I** took over."

The sound of clapping greeted his ears. "Not bad, not bad," Seto said. "But how about this: Kill one man, you're a murderer. Kill a million, a conqueror. Kill them all – a God."

"Ooh, that's a good one," Malik enthused. "How about this: 'I will reign in terror, stupid mortals – **your** terror – whether you like it or not!'"

Kaiba seesawed one hand back and forth. "Ne, that's more along the lines of blowing a raspberry at someone and going 'Nyah-nyah-nyah nyah-nyah-nyah!'"

"I'd like to see you do better," Malik said, meaning every word of it. Kaiba could come up with some of the most interesting phrases in this little game, and since it wasn't technically a competition, he didn't mind 'losing' to him.

Kaiba paused, a thoughtful look on his face, before finally saying, "All right, how about this? Advice for people attempting to conquer world: 'When taking over the world, be sure and make the process as difficult in possible for those in charge.'"

Malik chuckled. "Ah, not much better than mine, but funny, Seto."

"And I suppose you have a better one?" Kaiba demanded, a smile lurking on his lips.

"Hmmm… Well, in accordance with your 'killing' one, how about this for a slogan? 'When I'm God, everyone dies.'"

"Nice one."

Of course, most of what they had in common was less…bizarre. Not by much, but anyway…

Neither of them was all that fond of the Friendship Cult. Kaiba even had a similarly rude nickname for them – he called them the Friendship Freaks.

"A Friendship Cult **of** Freaks," Malik had offered as a compromise, and Kaiba had agreed. From there on out, Yugi and his friends were known as the FCF.

It wasn't that there was anything particularly **wrong** with any of them – they were annoying as all hell sometimes, but otherwise they weren't even a thorn in his side. Oh, sure, Téa was a very strong-willed woman, reminded him a lot of his sister, in fact, but he'd hardly ever heard her talk about anything not involving friendship or dancing. Joey had a very short temper and while Malik would admit that the blond had a right to hold a grudge against him for the mind control/death trap thing that Marik had engineered, he had never understood what Joey had against Kaiba. It probably had something to do with Yugi, though.

Yugi, for his part, was nice to almost everyone, but Malik had rarely ever met anyone with a stronger will – outside of the Pharaoh, of course. Tristan was like a more active version of Ryou, but just as easygoing; Ryou was almost stronger – mentally, anyway – than Yugi, despite his soft-spoken nature. Bakura reminded Malik of a blend of himself and Marik, the latter half being the reason he was wary around the tomb-raider, rather than his thieving skills.

Kaiba was a lot like him, especially where friendship was concerned. Neither of them had a clue how to make friends. That they'd each managed to befriend the other, and were now **dating**…

Well, neither of them knew how they'd managed it.

Kaiba was also the only other person he knew – personally, anyway – who owned a motorcycle. Malik had actually spent a few evenings making repairs to it – for a fee, of course, no matter that they were quote-unquote 'dating'; he didn't work for free, and hey, Kaiba could afford to pay him a few thousand yen for his time – while simultaneously teaching him the finer points of motorcycle mechanics.

Motorcycles, utter devotion to their siblings, a quirky, dry sense of humor, and an almost complete inability to relate to people their own age…

It was amazing how much they had in common.

Including off-the-wall conversations about seemingly irrelevant subject matter.

"Where do you see yourself after you graduate?" Seto had asked one afternoon about a month later. They were in the backyard of the Kaiba mansion, just watching the clouds go by. It was one of those lazy autumn days where the activity was oddly appropriate; just the right speed for the languid atmosphere that hung over everything. "Do you think you'll still be here in Domino, or will you go back to Egypt?"

"I don't think Isis wants to go back to Egypt," Malik said, folding his arms under his head and leaning back on them as he turned contemplative lavender eyes on the clouds passing by overhead. "And I'm not sure I do, either. Not permanently, anyway. Why, would you miss me if I left?" He slanted an inscrutable glance towards the brunet before going back to his cloud-watching.

The question was asked teasingly, but Seto could hear a ring of curiosity in Malik's voice. "Yes, I would," he said softly. "Very much so."

A small, yet genuine smile crossed Malik's face and he leaned up on one elbow, facing towards Seto. "I'd miss you, too," he admitted.

Seto reached out with one hand, idly toying with a strand of the Egyptian's platinum blond hair. "Then it would only make sense for you to stay here, so neither of us have to miss the other," Seto said practically, his tone as soft as his actions.

"If I can't find a job here in Domino, I might have to leave," Malik pointed out, eyebrows knitting together in suppressed fretfulness.

"You could…stay with me…if you wanted," Seto offered. "I'm sure I could find **something** for you to do, even if it was only taking care of the company vehicles."

Malik snorted. "Don't you think that would be weird – me working for you? We're dating, after all."

Seto shrugged. "Like I care as long as you're around." He stopped playing with Malik's hair and reached out to grasp the other's hand, clasping it tightly.

"What, you want to live happily ever after with me, Seto?" Malik asked incredulously, though his heart swelled at the though that the other wanted him around for the long haul.

"We could always try," Seto said honestly. "But no…with us, I think it might be more like 'weirdly ever after'."

Malik snorted. "Too true."

As Seto tugged him closer and pressed their lips together in a soft kiss, Malik thought, _As long as it's with Seto…I think weird would make me happy._

_Yeah…after all, every life needs a little weirdness, if only to keep things from getting boring._


	7. Comfort Is A Four Letter Word

**Comfort Is A Four-Letter Word**

* * *

_Nice,_ Malik thought muzzily, drifting in a half-awake, half-dozing state. It was nice being where he was.

Funny that 'where he was' was in Seto Kaiba's arms. The kissing he could understand liking, but he never knew that he was a cuddler.

Not that he really had a **problem** with it... But like any man – secure in his masculinity though he might have been – he didn't want something so…sappy…getting out to the general populace. Luckily, considering his gender and who he was dating, it wouldn't be.

At least not anytime soon…

A rumble from his pillow – also known as Seto's chest – caught his attention, and he turned his focus onto said cushion.

"What?" Malik asked, yawning slightly.

"I've been meaning to ask you something," Seto repeated.

"Hmm?" Malik asked, unconsciously snuggling closer into Seto's embrace.

"Not that I've seen it all that well, but…do you have a tattoo on your back?" Seto asked.

Malik's eyes snapped open and he bolted upright. Seto had **seen** that? When? How?

As his panic-induced burst of adrenaline slowly wore off, his thoughts slowed down and he was able to think again after a few minutes.

When it happened, he might never know, but considering that he was fond of wearing short shirts, it wasn't outside the realm of possibility that one of them had ridden up one day and Kaiba had caught a glimpse of his scars.

He'd foolishly hoped that Seto would never have to see them. But who was he kidding? Each day they grew closer, their relationship more intimate. It was only a matter of time before they went beyond making out…

And it would be silly to think that he could have a sexual relationship with someone and never take off his shirt.

He might be kinky, but that would be just plain weird.

"No," Malik said at length, finally answering the brunet's question. He forced himself to drop back down next to Seto, his back pressed tightly against the couch so that the other couldn't get a look at anything.

"Malik…" Seto said softly, one hand reaching out hesitantly to clasp the blond's. "I'm sorry if I brought up bad memories, but…"

Letting out a shuddering breath, Malik said, "It's not your fault, I just…I would have thought that Yugi – or is it Yami? I don't know… – would have told you."

"They know?" Seto asked, unable the keep the – was that jealousy? – out of his voice.

Malik shrugged, heart warming slightly at the brunet's tone. _He cares…_ "It all came up when they found out about Marik." His tone indicated his displeasure at that fact, which seemed to mollify Seto somewhat.

"Would you tell me about it?" Seto asked.

_Not 'Do you want to tell me about it?' – because he knows I'd rather not,_ Malik thought with dark humor. _He knows me so well…and why doesn't that frighten me in the least? It comforts me, in fact… _Shaking off his thoughts, Malik said quietly, "All right."

"It isn't a tattoo," he said to start off with. "They're scars."

"Scars?" Seto asked gently. He turned Malik's hand until it lay palm up in his own hand, tracing a soothing pattern on the palm.

Malik gave a sliver of a smile at the calming gesture, and nodded. "Technically, I suppose you could consider it a tattoo, if only because the knife carved a pattern." Before Seto could ask what the pattern was, Malik continued, "It was my…duty…as the firstborn son in my family…to have the Pharaoh's memories carved onto my back. I didn't want them, I begged my father not to do it, to **stop**, but…" He blinked back tears and looked down, unable to go on.

"I'm so sorry that happened to you," Seto said, voice low. His hand let go of Malik's and he pulled the Egyptian into a loose embrace, keep him close but not trapping him there, within the circle of his arms.

"No more than I," Malik said, his chuckle watery with unshed tears.

"True," Seto said, slight humor in his tone. "But…you're not alone in this, you know."

"I know…I have you," Malik said, knowing that this was Seto's way of saying 'I'll be there for you.'

But Seto shook his head. "That's not what I meant."

"It wasn't?" Malik asked nervously. _He doesn't want to stay now that he knows…_ the thought came unbidden to his mind. It was one of the few fears that he still had. That Seto would leave him.

_When did I fall in love with him?_ Malik thought wonderingly, the awe at the realization eclipsing his worry over Seto's reaction.

A rustle of cotton on leather upholstery greeted the blond's ears as Seto moved closer still, remaining silent as he thought how best to phrase his words. "I meant that…you're not the only one with scars, Malik," Seto said at length, voice almost inaudible.

Looking at his boyfriend askance – and breathing a silent sigh of relief as his fears were proved unfounded – Malik asked softly, "What do you mean, Seto?"

"Haven't you ever noticed?" Seto asked, dark humor quirking his lips in a crooked smile. "You're not the only one in this relationship who never takes their shirt off."

It hit him with all the force of a bullet impacting him right between the eyes. He'd gotten so used to never taking his own shirt off – to go swimming, to work on his bike, to clean the house, anything except to shower or change clothes – that it had never occurred to him that it was out of the ordinary for Seto to indulge in the same idiosyncrasy.

"How did you get your scars?" Malik asked softly, slanting a calm lavender gaze towards his koi. Just as Seto had given him a choice, he wasn't going to force Seto to tell him.

But just like he needed to tell Seto about his father, he sensed that Seto needed to talk to him about this.

"In a…similar situation," Seto said haltingly, staring off into the distance over Malik's shoulder. "Gozabura...my foster 'father'… Whenever I wasn't good enough, or he wasn't satisfied with something I'd done, he'd…**punish**…me. He had this riding crop he liked to use…" The brunet trailed off into brooding silence and Malik tried hard not to mentally extrapolate from what Seto had said.

But it was hard not to. He had plenty of experience with his own father to come up with hundreds, no, even thousands of awful tortures Gozabura Kaiba could have inflicted on his adopted 'son'.

_I hope he rots in hell, along with Anubis Ishtar,_ Malik thought fiercely. _Named after a death God; is it any wonder my father reveled in the sight of blood?_

_**My** blood…_

Malik shivered.

_I am **so** glad Isis was born first. I shudder to think what name I would have ended up with – Ra, to feed my father's ego, Horus, to feed his need to serve the Pharaoh's power? – Malik was bad enough. 'Master' indeed._

_But Isis…Isis, the Mother Goddess; a good omen for her life, and one she lived up to. Certainly as good of a mother to me as our mother would have liked to have been._

_Better, because our mother never tried to stop our father, didn't fight him about anything…and Isis would have stopped him, if she'd known._

_Or died trying._

Shaking off his melancholy – and slightly morbid – thoughts, Malik came back to the present, gratefully taking in the scent of warm skin and soft cotton, as comforting as Seto's strong arms around his chest. Barking a soft laugh, Malik said, "Well, aren't we a pair?"

"Yes indeed," Seto agreed wryly, one hand coming up to card tenderly through platinum-blond curls. "Good thing we found each other, isn't it?"

"Yeah," Malik said quietly. "It is."

Seto smiled at him then, a warm, genuine, albeit small smile.

And it seemed so natural to just lean up and kiss those smiling lips, caress them with own. Shudder in response to Seto's tongue seeking entrance to his mouth, entrance which he willingly granted.

Natural to let Seto lay him back on the wide couch, his strong, slender hands caressing him through his clothes. Natural to let crystal tears fall as he heard the words those lips stopped devouring his only long enough to whisper. Words of affection and attraction and heart-rending comfort delivered in between soul-deep kisses.

And when Seto slipped his shirt off his shoulders, Malik felt overwhelmed by trust of this man. Trust which eclipsed all the pain, and hurt, and confusion and raw fear that having Seto **see** the scars brought to the fore.

He wasn't afraid with Seto. And if that wasn't love…then what was?


	8. If I'm Not Already Crazy Then I Must Be ...

**If I'm Not Already Crazy, Then I Must Be In Love**

****

* * *

The next few months passed by in a blur of laughter, tears, fun, getting-to-know-you type activities, family dinners – both Malik's and Seto's, and it didn't surprise Malik at all that his sister had taken to Mokuba so quickly. Isis had always been a nurturer at heart – shared books, shared life stories…

Shared bodies, and hearts. And dare he even think it? Shared souls…

Malik had never felt so close to anyone as he did to Seto. And it wasn't just the physical closeness – though sex was just as wonderful as his sister's favored sappy romance movies made it out to be – but the **mental** closeness. He'd read somewhere that the word 'intimacy' originally came from the Latin word meaning 'lack of fear'.

He thought it fitting, especially since it was oh-so-very true in his and Seto's relationship. Malik never felt safer than when he was with Seto. Nightmares came infrequently when he dozed in the brunet's arms, and even when Seto convinced him to watch a horror movie marathon on late night television, he wasn't scared of the televised terrors.

As long as Seto held him in his warm embrace.

And though Seto never said anything, he was pretty sure the brunet felt the same way.

* * *

"We should do this more often," Malik said, a sleepy, happy smile on his lips.

"No way. Experimental sex is for the weekends, when I have at least a forty-eight hour window in which to recover from whatever you've put me through," Seto said tiredly, leaning back against his pillow and massaging his wrist where the faint red marks of silk scarves still lingered.

Not that it hadn't been fun, but bondage was physically draining in more than one way, Seto thought with a small smirk.

"Aw, you know you like it," Malik teased.

Seto just smirked, rolling his eyes.

"We could just skip school," Malik suggested, one hand creeping out from under the covers to rub soothing patterns on Seto's bare stomach. "That way we'd have more time to do…things."

Slanting his koi a look out of the corner of his eye, Seto drawled, "And what would you tell Isis?"

A panicked look entered Malik's eyes before vanishing as if it had never been. "I'd tell her that I skipped out of gym in order to get a more…vigorous workout," he quipped, leering at his lover's body beneath the only partially concealing sheet.

Seto snorted. "You're insatiable, Malik."

"I'm a teenager; what do you expect?" Malik said practically.

Seto snorted.

* * *

"Two more weeks," Malik said out of the blue, dropping down next to Seto on the bench outside of school the Monday following their little excursion into the realm of bondage.

"Until graduation?" Seto guessed correctly, turning to face his koi.

"Aa. I cannot **wait** to get out of this hideous torture known as high school." Malik shuddered mock-theatrically.

Seto smirked at the accurate description of their soon to be alma mater.

"I actually can't believe I lasted this long," Malik said in disbelief. "I thought for sure I would have gotten kicked out, suspended…or **Ra**, at least gotten a detention by now. Six months without causing trouble…that's practically unheard of for me." He shook his head and leaned back against one trenchcoat-draped shoulder.

Snorting, Seto turned to give Malik's head more support and said, "I'm sure if Domino High knew how much trouble you've caused previously in your life, they would have run screaming from you, and never let you enroll."

Malik shrugged laconically. "Either that or they'd have shot me on sight."

"Unless they were wooden bullets, I don't think they'd have done any good," Seto joked.

Turning his head, Malik smirked, baring the elongated canines that were one of the few physical remnants of his yami's possession – aside from slightly spikier hair and an extra inch of height – and drawled, "Heaven won't take me and hell is afraid I'll take over. The Powers That Be don't know how to classify me. Thus, I will **never** die, if only to save the deific bureaucrats from a mound of extra paperwork and red tape."

"Immortality isn't all it's cracked up to be," Seto cautioned, suppressed mirth making his cheeks bulge slightly.

"And don't I know it," Malik replied fervently.

Seto just shook his head and went back to holding up the wall.

"So," Malik drawled. "What do you want to do tonight, Brain?"

One brunet eyebrow quirked. "The same thing we do every night, Blondie," Seto replied dryly.

"Try to take over the world!" they chorused, before breaking out laughing.

"Oh, no," came the sound of a familiar British voice from behind them. "They've teamed up! We're doomed. Doomed, I say."

"FCF alert," Malik hissed out of the corner of his mouth as he scooted a polite distance away from the CEO. No need to let the friendship group know about their **true** relationship.

"Taylor," Seto said in agreement as said brunet walked up to them. "And the mutt," he said with a smirk as he saw Joey trailing along behind the other.

"And Téa, Yugi and Ryou," Malik added as he caught sight of the smarter half of the roving stupidity that was the FCF heading their way.

"What are you two doin' tagether?" Joey asked as he came to stop in front of the two lovers.

"Sitting on a bench," Malik quipped, leaning back on his spread palms.

Yugi rolled his eyes.

Eyes narrowing, Tristan said to the Egyptian, "You know what he means."

"Why doesn't the mutt just **say** what he means, then?" Malik asked pleasantly. "It's not all that hard to do. I'm sure even someone with his lack of mental capabilities could handle it."

Joey growled.

"Here, I'll show you," Malik continued, ignoring both Wheeler's growing raging and Seto's growing mirth. "Joey, would you please leave? Note how precise and concise that phrasing was, instead of saying something like…oh…Wheeler, get the fuck out of here." All this was said with a polite, toothy smile on his face.

"Ishtar!" Joey roared, before he lunged.

And was stopped by a bladed golden staff in his path. The Millennium Rod's knife was extended and aimed at the blond's throat.

In order to get away from the threat to his jugular, Joey leaned back, leading with his neck, followed by his upper torso, and at the last, his feet. Without his feet under him to balance him, consequently, he **over**balanced, and ended up flat on his back, the wind knocked out of him by his fall.

Téa and Ryou tried hard to hide their giggles at this so Joey-like demonstration of physical prowess. Tristan was a thunderstorm of murderous rage brewing in the background as helped his friend to his feet, and Yugi just sighed, knowing that no good could come from this. Antagonizing a Millennium Item holder was **never** a good idea.

Malik smirked, retracted the blade, tucked the Rod back in his jacket pocket and went back to leaning back on his hands. "Chaos, panic, disorder…my work here is done," he pronounced smugly.

Seto snorted, that spare, wry grin that Malik knew so well on his face; more a flash of sky-bright eyes than any motion of lips. "Sounds like my office when Mokuba's on a sugar high," he offered his first contribution to the conversation since its inception.

"Isn't he too old for that?" Malik asked curiously. Mokuba was twelve, almost thirteen, after all. Weren't sugar highs something that happened to really young children?

"It hasn't happened in almost three years – and I am **extremely** glad," Seto said fervently. "The last time it happened, I had to use a power cord to tie him to a chair just so he'd hold still long enough for me to finish my work without worrying he was going to break something."

"As interestin' as dis whole trip down memory lane is," Joey said, acting as if would have liked to add a loud 'NOT!' to the end. "Could we get back ta da matter at hand?" he inquired, belligerence dripping from every word.

"Which is?" Malik and Seto asked in unison, lavender and blue eyes blinking at Joey in feigned innocence.

Shaking his head at the cute yet…creepy image the duo presented, Joey demanded, not willing to be swayed from his course, "Why are you two so buddy-buddy all of a sudden?"

"We're friends, Wheeler. Surely that's a concept even someone with as little brain power as you possess can comprehend?" Seto quipped.

"Friends?" Joey squeaked. "**You **two?"

Téa raised one skeptical brunette brow; Tristan just looked pole-axed. Yugi and Ryou, for their part, just gave small, fleeting smiles and shook their heads in exasperation. They knew how much trouble those two could cause **separately**. How much worse would it be now that they'd combined forces?

"Yes, us two," Malik said irritatedly, glaring at the blond. "You have a problem with that, mutt?"

Joey growled.

"You've been a bad influence on him, Kaiba," Tristan put in, coming out of his daze. "Ishtar was always screwy, but now he's picking up your insults."

"Malik is not 'screwy' as you put it, Taylor," Seto said, ice-blue gaze cutting ribbons through the other brunet.

"Well, now, I wouldn't say that…" Malik drawled teasingly, giving Seto a searing look out of the corner of his eye. A subtle smile tugged at his lips. "I have screwed **up** a few things in my day." _Including you…three nights ago, Blue Eyes,_ the blond thought smugly.

Face flushing at the memories the Egyptian's words provoked, Seto responded, "And screwed down, too, I'm sure. Still…" He whirled on the other blond. "The mutt has no place to talk about someone **else **being weird."

Joey frowned, but said nothing.

"I'm weird and I admit it," Malik said blithely. The formerly repressed smile was now unleashed, pointed canines flashing in the fading sunlight. "But better weird than stupid." He slanted Joey a pointed glance.

Joey just growled and gnashed his teeth, but wisely refrained from attacking Malik again. "Never thought I'd see the day when Seto Kaiba would make friends with someone," he spat out. "Thought you said friendship was for losers, Moneybags."

"**Your** kind of friendship, anyway," Seto said tolerantly.

"Friendship is friendship, Kaiba," Téa said.

"People are unique individuals, Gardner," Malik said matter-of-factly. "And the relationships they form with each other are as well."

Stunned by the Egyptian's eloquence, the brunette couldn't think of anything to say to that. Malik was right.

"Anyway…" Yugi cut in, tugging Joey back from another confrontation. "I think it's time for us to go." _Joey may be dense, but **I** for one know when I'm not needed,_ he thought.

_Or wanted._

"Yes, indeed," Ryou agreed, snagging Tristan and Téa. _I'm glad for Malik,_ he thought. _We weren't what he needed, but I've known for a long time that **both** of them needed a friend. Ironic – or maybe not so – that they found that friend in each other._

"See you at school tomorrow, guys," Yugi called. _I wonder why we were all so surprised by their friendship? They eat lunch together every day._

Malik waved, biting down on the urge to stick his tongue out at the departing annoyances. "See you."

Seto just nodded in reply.

Once the group was out of sight, Malik heaved a sigh of relief and snuggled back up to his boyfriend. "That was close," he pronounced.

"You said it," Seto agreed.

"We should probably not be so 'friendly' on school grounds," Malik said reluctantly, making as if to remove himself from Seto's side.

"No one else is here," Seto argued, wrapping one arm around Malik's waist and tugging him closer. "Now that the FCF is gone, anyway."

Malik nodded in acceptance.

"Besides, like you said, it's only two weeks until school is over for good," Seto continued. "We won't see those losers all the time then."

"They're not all bad," Malik objected.

"They're not all **good**, either," Seto countered. "And Wheeler is an idiot."

Malik nodded, suppressing a smile. "He is one of those people who would be enormously improved by death," he said contemplatively. "Or at least some time in the Shadow Realm. It would at least teach him the value of thinking before he opens his big mouth."

Seto snorted. "Indeed."

"You still planning to offer me a job after graduation if I haven't found anything?" Malik asked curiously.

"Why not?" Seto asked, pragmatic as always. "I can always use a good mechanic."

"Isis wants me to work with her at the museum," Malik told him.

"Doing what?" Seto asked, one brunet brow rising. "Cataloging old artifacts?"

"I think she said something about part-time security," Malik said smilingly. "Seems she thinks the Rod will be able to keep thieves away."

"Is that something you'd be interested in?" Seto asked curiously. He was always having problems finding people he could trust for his security details.

"Not full-time, no," Malik mused thoughtfully. "But in addition to something else…"

"You could work in the garage and on my security team in half-shifts," Seto offered.

"I might take you up on that," Malik said at last. "First, I should actually put some real effort into finding a job, though. I can't very well let you support me for the rest of my life." He rolled his eyes, tossing his platinum blond mane over one shoulder and snuggling closer to Seto.

Seto nodded; he could understand not wanting to be indebted to someone. Even someone to whom you were close. Even someone you trusted.

Even your lover.

Rather, **especially** your lover.

"Two weeks," Seto reflected. "And then we graduate and the world considers us adults." He smirked. "Or rather, the world considers **you** an adult. I've been an emancipated minor for the past four years."

Malik snorted. "Like I need a piece of paper to tell me I'm not a kid anymore? Civilization – bah."

"I agree. The need for paperwork has grown much too prevalent in today's society," Seto said complacently.

"Mmm."

Silence reigned for long moments, before Malik heaved a sigh and pulled reluctantly away from his human pillow. "As wonderful as this is, we should probably go. I know you have work to do, and Isis made me promise to help her with some translations tonight."

"See you tomorrow?" Seto asked as they both rose from their bench.

"And every day after," Malik agreed amicably, preparing to leave.

Seto froze, stunned by those simply spoken words. _What…?_ Reaching out, he stopped Malik just as he was slipping on his backpack before heading back to his motorcycle. "Every day?" Seto asked, a pensive note to his voice.

Malik was brought up short, the affirmation dying on his lips as he mentally replayed his words. _I can't believe I said that…_

_But I meant it, didn't I?_ "Well…" He flushed and looked down at his feet. His words, no matter how carelessly spoken, were the truth. He **wanted** to spend the rest of his life with Seto.

True, he was young – maybe **too** young – to make such a decision, but…

It felt **right**. Like nothing had in life since…ever.

Shrugging diffidently, Malik said quietly, "Every day…if you want."

A small, genuine smile spread slowly across Seto's lips. "Who else am I going to live weirdly ever after with?" He reached out with one hand to pull Malik close.

"Weirdly ever after?" Malik asked hesitantly, arms coming up almost involuntarily to wrap around Seto's neck.

"As weirdly as possible," Seto agreed, leaning down to pressed their lips together.

Malik grinned into the kiss. He had no clue what the future would bring, but – for once – his life…his **future**…looked oh-so-bright.

Weirdly ever after was one thing…but suddenly he got the feeling that happily ever after wasn't impossible.

And it was all because of Seto Kaiba.

The man he loved.

* * *

THE END


End file.
